Priceless Night
by Falneou17
Summary: After a tragic loss at a young age, the young Shirokane Rinko was overcome by grief and despair. In her desperation to escape the cold and bitter reality, she donned a new persona and set out to fulfill her late lover's one and final desire. But will she be able to adjust to the new lifestyle, or will she succumb to the demons of her past and wilt away? AU!


**So… this story idea was actually brought up in passing in a random chat I had with ReiTheMegaMawile a little while back and I may or may not have been thinking about said idea quite a bit since then. A more… dedicated… AN will be shown at the end of this oneshot.**

**A special thank you to LightZephyr who helped with the brainstorming and beta reading. Seriously, I have no idea why you agreed to do that for this particular oneshot ^^' another special thank you to ReiTheMegaMawile for providing the basis for this oneshot. For those curious, the cover image features the _Fascinating Investigation_ Shirokane Rinko card, the _Me and My Piano_ Shirokane Rinko card, and the cover image for Roselia's _Fire Bird_. These names might change in the future depending on how the card titles get translated over to the EN server of the game, but that is still months away at the time of writing this oneshot****…**

**Also… this oneshot was, admittedly, not written with this purpose in mind, but considering what day it is today… happy birthday, Shirokane Rinko!**

**I do not own BanG Dream! Girls Band Party nor do I, in any way, shape or form, intend to pretend that I do.**

* * *

It was a cold, dark night that I found myself in. If my sense of time was right, I would think it was early-November… or was it still October? It could even still be September now that I took a moment to think about it… no matter what month of the year it was, it did not matter to me; time really did not matter to me anymore after that day.

With the piercing wind fighting to blow me over, I fumbled around with my hood to try and protect myself from the elements. Whenever I went out to do my duty in the night, I would always bring this hood with me. It has been a tradition for me for years now, a good luck charm so to say.

Once I was protected from the cold, I checked up on my other belongings that I had brought with me. A small belt was clasped tightly around my waist, holstering a variety of different daggers. I looked over them one by one before settling on my favorite pair, pulling the weapons in question out and holding them in my hands.

Tightening my grip on the hilt of my daggers, I slowed my breathing and my heartbeat; the last thing I would want was for my target to know that I am here. Or where, for that matter.

In. Out. In. Out. The moment I was calm again, I opened my eyes before frowning; the dim light around me needed some getting used to, after all.

The thick blanket of mist covering the streets would make an unwary traveler walk around in circles, but I know these streets. I know them because this is where we used to meet.

I gritted my teeth. No! This is not the right time for me to remember my past. I am no longer that weak and feeble girl I was five years ago! Right now I am—

I froze when the sound reached my ears. Footsteps, at least three different people were coming closer to where I am, but who? My presence was concealed and there should only be one person here. Was the tip I got wrong or did my target find out about me and brought reinforcements?

'It can't be helped…' I thought to myself, swallowing down what little hesitation that lingered in my mind. It did not matter if there were one or three people I had to take care of, a job is a job. I quickly brought back a map of my surroundings from memory and made my move.

I got myself in position, lowering my body down to where I almost can touch the ground with my chin. My right hand twitched, yearning to do nothing more than to reach for and throw one of the daggers I had brought with me.

But the risk of it going wrong if I were to do that was too big, and I knew I needed to settle on something else. My eyes darted around me for an alternative and a small pile of pebbles caught my attention.

'Beggars can't be choosers, it will have to do,' I consoled myself as my left hand grabbed a handful of them. Each rock that rested in my palm was small and insignificant, none of these would be much of a problem for anybody. I doubt they would be anything more than _hindered_ by a measly pebble bouncing off their skulls.

But a whole bundle of them was another story. A group of insignificant pebbles could really make a difference if I used them together. And with how loud the trio of footsteps was sounding now I knew that I didn't have a lot of time left.

I worked fast to get the trap set, throwing some caution in the wind by doing so as I was making more noise than I was comfortable with. I knew that this might be the only chance I'd get, but I would only have one chance. This had to work. Failure was no longer an option; not now, not ever.

Several painstakingly long seconds later, it was ready. The bundle of pebbles was suspended in the air with a single thin but strong thread. It may not be the best that I could do, but if it did what I needed it to do then I will be more than satisfied.

The sound of footsteps that I had somehow ignored sounded thunderous in the otherwise silent night. It even hurt my ears, an annoying ringing tune starting to overwhelm my hearing. But that would not be enough to stop me from what I came here to do. From what I had to do.

With a deep yet silent intake of air, I aimed the package of pebbles and threw it in an arc towards my target. Even as it started to sail back down to the ground I was on my feet and dashing from one shadow to the other; just because I had a distraction did not mean that I could lower my guard completely.

The bundle of pebbles crashed on the ground not even a meter away from my target, shattering and spreading the tiny rocks all around the area. Even as I moved from shadow to shadow I could not help but smile slightly: it worked. All three members of the group were distracted and were busy looking around them for the source of that sound.

'Perfect,' I thought to myself, reaching down to my waist and pulling out two small but sharp daggers, one in each hand. The next part almost came naturally to me. _Swipe. Swoosh._ The blades of my daggers sliced through the skin of their victims with practiced precision.

Before the third and final member of the group realized what was happening, it was already too late. Her two accomplishes were falling to the ground with deep cuts in the back of their necks, defeated in the blink of an eye. The only survivor was looking at me with wide eyes, trembling from head to toe knowing that she would be next.

I hopped over the legs of one fallen body to slide behind my target, knowing that letting up now could become a fatal mistake. My daggers shot up and pierced through the mist before I abruptly stopped their motion. The tips of both weapons were barely scraping past the throat of the only other conscious soul there and we both knew that I had her right where I wanted her. She could not move without receiving a possibly-lethal wound, and that left her with only one option in the situation.

"W-What do you want?" her voice croaked—no, _squeaked_ as it left my prey's mouth. I could feel her entire body tremble against me as my daggers started to dig into the skin of her throat more.

It was probably because of this that she hurriedly added, "Don't hurt me! I-I'll give you anything!"

"Anything?" I asked, echoing her words as if to ask for confirmation. In actuality, I knew that I had not misheard her; I just needed to extend this period of time as long as I could to get what I wanted. To get what I needed to know. Fear was a powerful tool and I knew how to induce it in those unlucky enough to stand in my way.

"Yes! So please, just tell me what you want and I'll give it to you!"

I couldn't help but smile to myself when I heard those words. Without wasting any movement, I withdrew my daggers and pushed my target forward. She stumbled enough even without my extra help, but I still stuck out my foot regardless for good measure.

When she rolled over to glare at me, her face colored with the dust and dirt she had just fallen in, I aimed and threw a dagger. The dagger missed her face by a millimeter, but it did what I needed it to do: it left a message that I would not hesitate to end her life if she were to not cooperate with me. Even though it did not hit her, the dagger that had embedded itself deep into the ground still pinned her down.

"There is only one thing I want, and you can stop playing dumb now. We both know that you know what I want," I said with a sweet smile, pulling out a second dagger and twirling it around my fingers without a care in the world. Despite how calm and controlled I presented myself, I knew that I could not wait for any longer; I had been waiting for this moment for so long now. Weeks? Months? I can't even remember how long it has been.

Feeling like I had tortured my prey long enough, I crouched down in front of her. Using the tip of my dagger to force her to look up at me, I reveled at that look in her eyes. The look of absolute terror when a predator looms over them.

But I was neither heartless or a monster, so I decided against toying with her any longer. Part of this was motivated by the fact that I knew I could not waste any more time.

"Tell me where your leader is and I won't need to hurt you. Tell me what I want to know and you are free to go."

* * *

It did not take long for me to get the answer to my question from my broken victim. A few minutes after extracting the information I needed, I was on the move again. I was true to my word: I let that purple-haired lady go as soon as she answered my request. Of course, since it took her longer than I was willing to wait for her to give me a straight answer, she may or may not have ended up with a handful of scars. How many cuts she received on her pale skin was not my problem, right?

Shaking off the little part of my mind that was still worried, I focused on what I was doing. And, what was more important right now, where I found myself. I followed the instructions given to me like the good dog that I was, and while it may not always work out well… my trust was rewarded beautifully.

Towering in front of me was the largest building in the area, standing at four floors tall and made of a fancier-looking concrete than those used for the buildings around it. It was also fortified by a heavy fence around the perimeter; a fence that could keep most wild animals and petty thieves out. For me? That fence was a minor inconvenience at most as I jumped over it with little effort. Climbing in through one of the windows on the ground floor was also an easy task for me, it was almost as if they _wanted_ me to enter…

I broke out from my train of thoughts to focus back on where I was. But that was not the only reason why I had to be careful. I would recognize this feeling anywhere…

I was no longer alone in the corridor.

The sound of footsteps echoed through the enclosed space, and they weren't sounding like they were moving away from me. Quite the opposite, actually: they were moving towards me.

With nowhere to hide and only seconds left before I would be discovered, my mind raced a hundred kilometers an hour to come with an idea. And then it hit me: the door in front of me was unlocked.

'Let's hope this works,' I thought to myself as my feet were already moving. With practiced precision, I dashed to the other side of the corridor without a sound and slipped inside. Once in the room, I took a quick glance around me and felt my heart sink.

The room was nice and all, allowing me some breathing space before being caught, but the room itself was empty. There was nowhere left to hide. And that was not the only bad news that my brain registered.

"Hello? Is anybody there?"

I froze. The guard was standing right outside the room I was in and I had nowhere left to run. I was confident I could knock the guard unconscious and escape afterward, but that might give me more problems later on. A guard who did not report in would surely be noticed by the higher-ups eventually.

Faced with only a handful of options, none of which would end up with very good results for me, I barely even noticed when the door to my room started to swing open. Time was up, I blew my one and only chance to do this!

And then something incredible happened.

Time started to slow down around me. A gradual, steady decline in how fast everything was moving around me. The swaying of the trees outside to the way the door flung open, it all came down to a grinding halt before stopping completely.

I blinked a couple of times, wondering what had happened and why this change had yet to affect me. A part of me wanted to stay around and find out what was going on, but I knew better than to waste this opportunity. As curious as I was, this was my only opening to escape!

Suppressing my sense of curiosity, I ducked under the guard's outstretched arm and made a break for it as soon as I entered the corridor again. I knew where I needed to go and nothing was going to stop me from getting there.

Within seconds I was already several corridors away from that room, but if I had stayed a bit longer I would have seen how time returned to normal.

* * *

Finding the room I needed to go to was a simple task once I knew that I was no longer being followed and could focus on finding where I needed to go. A small voice in the back of my mind told me that the guards inside would have tried to randomize their routes in case someone would use their pattern to find the way. Even if this was true, then it was still very easy for me to find the right path and avoid everybody as well. Despite their best efforts, they would not be able to stop me from doing what I came here to do.

'Almost too easy…' I thought to myself as I reached the third floor, slowing my pace down by a bit so I could catch my breath again. I had come this far undetected by the patrolling guards and I would like to keep it that way. That first guard might have heard me, but I still managed to give him the slip, so I still counted that as a victory… a _small_ victory, if nothing else.

A few seconds later I was back sprinting from one shadow to the next. I did not sense another person around me, but I also knew that I could never be more careful. Especially now that I am deep in foreign territory.

Now that there was nobody for me to worry about, I managed to make my way through the corridor at a rapid pace. And it was with this pace that I reached my target: a door at the end of the corridor, seemingly innocent based on appearance alone.

'But looks can be very deceiving… that was one of the first things you taught me, right?' I allowed my mind to drift for a few seconds; and as I did, a familiar face started to resurface in my mind… but as much as I wanted to return to those more peaceful times, I knew that I could not… and that I should not dwell on the past.

'She would be disappointed in me if she were to see me like this…' I thought to myself, trying to let that thought linger and sober my mind up. It worked. Her face had disappeared from my mind and I was able to think clearly again.

And that was when I remembered where I was and what I was doing. No time to hesitate, just get in there and do what I am supposed to do! It will be all right… I have done this so often.

I reached down to my waist to slide a pair of daggers out of their sheaths. Gripping my weapons tightly, I opened the door and slid it open. The creaking it made felt like a thunderous roar in the otherwise still and quiet night and I winced slightly when I realized this. I was careless in opening the door, a mistake that could cost me; but as it turned out, I was lucky. I did not sense someone rushing to my direction.

I needed to push any unnecessary thoughts out and focus on what was right in front of my eyes… and what _was_ in front of me was the very reason why I went through the trouble to get here.

The room I was in was a large, rectangular room. The main source of light came in the form of the moonlight entering through the multitude of three-meter tall windows. A thin but intricately-designed carpet lay on the floor, but that was the only form of decorations of any sort I could see. No paintings, no sculptures, and no objects hanging on the walls to act as trophies.

The only other thing of note was a simple couch facing the windows from its position in the middle of the room. Was it black? Or a dark navy color? I shook my head to try and ignore those questions and focused on the more pressing issue.

I was not alone in that room, somebody was sitting on the couch. The person did not seem to have noticed my presence yet, which worked to my benefit… That person was why I went through all the trouble to get here: my target.

I knew that I did not need to worry about anything anymore, having made it this far. Throwing caution out the window, I kicked the door shut and rushed in on my target and locked my blades around the target's neck with a sinister, triumphant smirk.

This was it. Only one thing left to do…

"Mission complete."

* * *

**So believe it or not, I was actually doing this just for fun because I had a sudden surge of inspiration (you can all thank ReiTheMegaMawile for that). But now, looking back at this, I honestly can see this pilot chapter be expanded upon for an actual multi-chapter series… I know that, at the time of writing (and even publishing this oneshot), my other multi-chapter work for this fandom (Scarlet Sunlight) is still ongoing, but… there is always the question of what will happen after that. Unlike The Times We Lost, I don't think that making a mini-series of oneshots in Scarlet Sunlight's universe would be worth it, so how about a new multi-chapter series? And with how much fun this was, why not a continuation of this one? If you are interested to see this be expanded upon in a multi-chapter series, please do say so in a review for this oneshot.**

**Thank you for reading this oneshot, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it, please leave a review telling me what you thought and until next time! Take care!**


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